Neither Ukraine nor allies know what Russia might offer in Istanbul, – Zelenskyy

He made the remarks during his evening video address.

“We're now preparing for new diplomatic steps together with our partners in Europe and—very importantly—with our partners in the United States. We’re in contact practically every day with everyone who can make diplomacy more than just empty words,” he said.

According to him, neither Ukraine, nor Turkey, nor the United States has any clear information about what exactly Russia plans to propose at the upcoming talks.

“As of now, there is no clear information about what the Russians are bringing to Istanbul. We don’t have it, Turkey doesn’t have it, the United States doesn’t have it—nor do other partners. So far, it doesn’t look very serious,” the president added.

Zelenskyy said he had discussed the issue the day before with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan.

“Of course, everyone in the world wants diplomacy to work and for there to be a real ceasefire. Everyone wants Russia to stop playing games with diplomacy and end the war. Everyone wants a serious peace, and Russia needs to agree to that. That’s what the agenda of these talks should be. We’ve made our agenda clear. We hope the U.S. side will take a firm stance on sanctions to help bring about peace,” Zelenskyy concluded.

• Donald Trump's special envoy for Ukraine, Keith Kellogg, says that representatives from the U.S., Germany, France, and the UK will participate in negotiations in Istanbul.